For every individual in the society today, socializing or gathering is an essential aspect that binds us together and plays a vital role in maintaining a healthy life.
This is equally important for persons with disabilities as well.
Unfortunately today, due to one’s disability or the way society perceives disability, most persons with disabilities tend to be isolated and confined to their homes. This has more often than not, resulted in a person accumulating depression, or other mental illnesses.
Therefore, community centers play a major role in breaking down barriers of isolation as it helps –
- Bind communities together:
This is the most important aspect of community contact centres as it is a one stop destination where people irrespective of religion, race, gender, age etc. can get together and hence bring about new ideas for the individual as well as the growth of communities. In addition to that, it also offers a chance for family and friends to get together and have fun.
- Gives people volunteer opportunities:
In today’s society where people feel life is too monotonous, doing something different is a welcome opportunity that one wouldn’t want to give up as it would help them break from every day chores. One such aspect is volunteering as it certainly helps break from the everyday tasks and involve in doing something different. On the other hand, it helps give back and do great things and it also is a great way to meet new people and socialise.
- It gives a chance to widen once scope in the community:
It doesn’t narrow down to staying within a specific place but also gives opportunity for a wider growth such as organising campaigns, cleaning up the surroundings, and also gardening. By doing this, people get together learn from each other and it helps build better social relationships.
- It helps fight loneliness:
Most persons with disabilities suffer from the anxiety of loneliness as they are more often than not isolated, therefore community centres gives them a chance to fight their loneliness as it is a good place to visit and get acquainted to new faces. Studies show almost a fifth of the population feel lonely always or often. Therefore it provides such people a chance to look forward to doing something new. Sometimes community centres are funded, which gives them a chance to organise trips and excursions, thereby decreasing the chances of loneliness.
- It promotes healthy living:
As most community centres offer chance to perform physical activity which is a rare opportunity for persons with disabilities, (activities includes walking clubs, fitness clubs etc.) It naturally calls for a healthy life style.
- It is a place where creativity and different cultures can be shown:
Community centers offer arts and craft classes and thus new talents comes to light. This therefore opens up for new opportunity and the more opportunity, the more people come in to visit.
(Source: club-insure.co.uk)
Disability Entrepreneurship And Leadership (DEAL) Foundation) works across the districts of Gadag and Bengaluru to promote sustainable livelihood opportunities for persons with disabilities. As a part of our work we ensure that persons with disabilities are not isolated but included and brought to the main stream of the society.
We do this by encouraging more persons with disabilities to form groups first within the community and slowly expand to the wider community so that more people become aware about persons with disabilities and the ways to deal with different disabilities.
For any questions regarding the blog, please write to us at info@deal-foundation.com.
To know more about the work we do, please log on to www.deal-foundation.com.
Awarded by Guidestar India